Mounting assembly for a waste discharge line of a medical treatment apparatus

ABSTRACT

A mounting assembly for a discharge conduit of a medical treatment device, such as a dialysis machine. The mounting assembly has a connector member detachably engageable with a discharge nozzle of a discharge conduit and a suction cup that can be mounted on a rim of a waste receptor, such as a sink or a toilet bow. The mounting assembly supports the discharge nozzle directly above the opening of the waste receptor, thereby facilitating discharge of the liquid waste directly into a municipal sewage line.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 10/764,230filed on Jan. 23, 2004 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,926,239 for “MountingAssembly for a Waste Discharge Line of a Medical Treatment Apparatus,”the full disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein andpriority of which is now claimed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an accessory for a medical treatmentapparatus, such as for instance, a dialysis machine, and moreparticularly to a support assembly for a drainage tube that is used topromote the drainage of fluids from a waste side of a dialysis machinein an efficient and sanitary manner.

The kidneys perform one of the most important functions in theelimination of waste in a human body; they filter out extra water andwaste, thereby cleaning the blood and facilitating production of anadequate level of red blood cells. When the kidneys fail, the fluids areretained in the blood and do not circulate in the proper fashion throughthe body. As a consequence, waste material builds up in the bodyseriously endangering health and wellbeing of the person.

Dialysis imitates the work of a kidney. Technology has developed twotypes of dialysis treatment: hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Themajority of the patients receive hemodialysis, by which the blood iscirculated outside the body and cleaned inside the machine beforereturning to the patient. The patent's blood is drained into thedialysis machine and a fluid called dialysate is also circulated throughthe machine. A thin, semi-permeable membrane separates the part thatcirculates the blood and the second part for the dialysate. As dialysateprocesses on one side of the membrane, and blood on the other, particlesin waste from the blood stream pass through the microscopic holes formedin the membrane and are washed away in the dialysate. Blood cells beingtoo large to go through the membrane holes are returned to the body.

The other type of treatment, peritoneal dialysis, uses the patient's ownperitoneal membrane as a filter. The peritoneal membrane is a sackaround the abdominal organs. This membrane is semi-permeable allowingwaste particles to go through it but preventing larger blood cells topenetrate the membrane. In this type of treatment, a patient has aplastic tube catheter surgically implanted into the abdominal wall. Thepatient's caregiver slowly empties the dialysate fluid into the catheterand exposes the blood to the dialysate through the peritoneal membrane.Similarly to the hemodialysis method, the waste particles are removedwith the dialysate and are discarded.

The peritoneal dialysis method has distinct advantages as it allows tosignificantly reduce the time needed for the dialysate to clean theblood and remove the waste. Additionally, the patient can perform theprocedure in a non-hospital setting or at thousands of locations aroundthe world. Such type of treatment may be administered by a caregiverthat may not be very experienced in other types of the dialysisprocedure.

When the patient or a caregiver performs the dialysis treatment, thewaste is drained into a bag or other container, which can then beemptied into a waste receptor, such as a sink or a toilet. Needless tosay, the bag is quite heavy and cumbersome to handle. Various solutionshave been offered to assist in disposing of the waste drained from amedical treatment device. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,633 issuedon Apr. 2, 1996 for “Ostomy Bag Cleaning Apparatus” discloses a device,which allows a patient to drain the waste from the ostomy bag into atoilet without disengaging the bag from the patient's body. The deviceuses a support for a patient at a sufficient height above a toilet bowlin the form of a platform with support bars that are mounted on thetoilet. A hose attached to a house water supply allows cleaning of theostomy bag while the patient is seated on the platform.

Another solution is offered in U. S. patent application 2002/0077608published on Jun. 20, 2002 and entitled “Peritoneal Waste Bag Supportand Drainage Device”. The application discloses a collapsible table,which supports a peritoneal waste bag in a desired location, forinstance, adjacent a toilet. A waste bag is placed on top of the table,with a plug of the waste bag being oriented above the toilet bowl. Theheight of the legs is adjusted to allow the table to be tilted andfacilitate drainage of the waste bag content by gravity directly intothe toilet.

Municipal and state plumbing codes allow drainage of dialysis wastedirectly into the municipal waste channels. However, the municipal andstate codes also require that the drainage from a fixture, device orappliance that discharges directly into a sink or other waste receptorterminate at a point below the flood level end of the sink. The samecodes also require that an unobstructed horizontal distance of be formedbetween the outside of the indirect waste pipe and the inside of thereceiving sink or toilet so as to allow a backflow of sewerage to spillover the flood level rim of the receiving sink or receptacle and therebyprevent the backflow from reaching the fixture, device, or appliancewhich is served by the indirect waste pipe.

Another provision of the plumbing code requires that the check valve beinstalled in the drain or in the sewer or drainage system to preventsewerage or drainage from backing into lower levels through the fixturesor devices not installed sufficiently above floor or drainage systems.Therefore, any device that drains into the sink or other receptacle mustbe provided with a check valve or have sufficient air gap in thedrainage system as required by the code. The approved air gap is atleast double the diameter of the supply pipe measured vertically abovethe overflow rim of the vessel and in ant case, less than 1 inch. Whilethe devices suggested by the prior art may satisfy these requirements,there is a danger that the plumbing regulations may be difficult tofollow when the waste bag is positioned atop of a tilted table, with theplug being positioned too close to the overflow level.

The present invention contemplates elimination of drawbacks associatedwith the prior art and provision of a mounting assembly for a drainagetube that can be mounted directly on the rim of a sink or other wastereceptor with sufficient air gap to satisfy the plumbing regulations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide amounting assembly for a liquid waste line of a medical treatmentapparatus that can be mounted on a rim of a sink or other wastereceptor.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a mountingdevice that can be easily and efficiently engaged and disengaged fromthe rim of the waste receptor as required.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a mountingdevice for a waste conduit that allows to satisfy the plumbing coderequirements while being easy to use by a patient or a caregiver in ahome or hospital environment.

These and other objects of the present invention are achieved through aprovision of a mounting assembly that can be detachably secured to thenozzle of a discharge line for supporting the discharge nozzle above anopening of a waste receptor. The mounting assembly has a connectormember, one end of which is securable to the discharge nozzle, and theother end of which carries a suction cup. The suction cup is mounted ona rim of the waste receptor, such as a sink or a toilet bowl. Theconnector member has sufficient longitudinal dimension to support thedischarge nozzle at a pre-determined distance above the waste receptor.The connector member has a first portion having a longitudinal dimensionof at least 0.5″ (1.25 cm), a second portion unitary connected to thefirst portion at an angle of at least 90 degrees and a third portion,which hooks around the top of the suction cup. The easy-to-use andinexpensive mounting assembly of the present invention may be used by acaregiver in a home or hospital setting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the drawings, wherein like parts aredesigned by like numerals, and wherein

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the mounting assembly in accordance withthe present invention engaged with a nozzle of a drainage line.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the mounting assembly in usewith a drainage conduit mounted on a rim of a toilet bowl.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the mounting assembly of the presentinvention in use with a drainage conduit mounted on a rim of a sink.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating position of the mountingassembly on a rim of a toilet bowl and connected to a drainage conduitof a medical treatment apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Turning now to the drawings in more detail, numeral 10 designates themounting assembly in accordance with the present invention. As can beseen in the drawings, the mounting assembly comprises a connector member12 and a suction cup 14 detachably engageable with the connector 12. Theconnector member 12 is formed as a unitary body carrying the suction cup14 on one end thereof and engageable with a discharge nozzle 22 of awaste conduit. The connector member 12 has a first portion 16, a secondor middle portion 18, and a third portion 20. The first portion 16 ofthe connector member 12 is detachably engageable with a tube connector24 of the nozzle 22.

It should be noted that the nozzle 22 and the tube connector 24 are ofconventional design typically used with a discharge conduit 40 of amedical treatment apparatus 42, such as dialysis machine or othersimilar devices. The tube connector 24 is fixedly secured on the outsideof the discharge part 26 of the nozzle 22. In conventional devices, thetube connector 24 serves as an engagement member for a connecting anattachment device. In the present invention, the first portion 16 issecured with the tube connector 24, thereby detachably securing theconnector member 12 with the sleeve 24.

The second, middle portion 18 of the connector member 12 is unitaryengaged with the first portion 16 and extends at 90 or greater degreesin relation to the longitudinal axis of the first portion 16. It isenvisioned that the second, middle portion 18 may extend at an obtuseangle in relation to the longitudinal axis of the first portion 16 or ata right angle, depending on the particular requirements.

The third portion 20 of the connecting member 12 is bent to form ahook-shaped attachment member that partially encircles a top knob 28 ofthe suction cup 14. The second part 32 of the suction cup 14 is formedas a dome-shaped body, which carries the top knob 28 in the centerthereof. The top knob 28 of the suction cup 14 has an upper surface 30and a reduced diameter neck located below the upper surface 30. Thethird portion 20 of the connecting member 12 engages the reduceddiameter neck, fitting between the top 28 and the dome-shaped body 32 ofthe suction cup 14.

The longitudinal dimension of the first portion 16 is selected to retainthe discharge part 26 of the nozzle 22 at a sufficient distance above arim of a waste receptor. In some of the embodiments, the longitudinaldimension of the first portion 16 is at least 0.5″ (1.25 cm). In some ofthe embodiments, the first portion forms an obtuse angle with the secondportion 18 so as to retain the discharge part 26 properly oriented abovethe waste receptor. In the preferred embodiment, the longitudinaldimension of the second portion 18 is at least as great as the radialdimension of the dome-shaped part 32 of the suction cup 14.

In operation, when drainage of a dialysate and other waste fluids isrequired, the user engages the mounting assembly 10 with the outletnozzle 22. The portion 16 is attached to the tube connector 24, therebytemporarily securing the mounting assembly 10 on the nozzle 22. Thewaste discharge line 40 extends from the medical treatment apparatus 42to a desired location, for instance, adjacent a toilet bowl 44. A rim 46of the toilet bowl 44 serves as a mounting surface for the assembly 10.A patient 50 may be located some distance from the waste receptor 44.

The waste material with dialysate circulated from the blood stream bythe dialysis machine 42 is conducted through the waste conduit 40 intothe nozzle 22. The discharge tube 26 of the nozzle 22 is extended abovethe toilet bowl 44 so that a sufficient air gap 52 (FIG. 4) is formedbetween the opening in the tube 26 and the surface of water (not shown)in the toilet bowl 44. The caregiver then attaches the suction cup 14 tofirmly engage the suction cup 14 with the rim 46. The connector member12 retains the opening of the discharge tube 26 above the rim 46. Thewaste fluid is then allowed to discharge through the nozzle 22 and thetube 26 directly into the toilet bowl 44 and into the municipal seweragelines.

The mounting assembly 10 can be used for positioning the outlet nozzle22 of the conduit 40 above a standard sink 54. In this case, the suctioncup 14 is engaged with the rim 56 of the sink 54. The outlet opening ofthe discharge tube 26 is oriented above the waste receptor, or sink 54.The waste from the dialysis machine is allowed to travel through thedischarge conduit 40, nozzle 22 and out of the tube 26 to be dischargeddirectly into the sink 54.

The connecting member 12 of the mounting assembly 10 is formed as a thinrod made of a noncorrosive material. The suction cup 14 is formed from aresilient, flexible plastic allowing the suction cup 14 to form thevacuum under the dome and secure the mounting assembly 10 on the sink orother receptacle.

Many changes and modifications can be made in the design of the presentinvention without departing from the spirit thereof. I, therefore, praythat my rights to the present invention be limited only by the scope ofthe appended claims.

1. A mounting assembly for a liquid waste discharge line for evacuatingwaste liquid from a blood treatment apparatus, said liquid wastedischarge line comprising a discharge nozzle having a tube connectoradjacent a free end thereof, said mounting assembly comprising: aconnector member having one end configured to frictionally engage withinan open bottom end of the tube connector of the discharge nozzle; and asuction cup detachably secured to the connector member, said suction cupbeing configured for detachable mounting on a rim of a sink or otherwaste receptor for supporting the discharge nozzle at a pre-determineddistance above the sink or other waste receptor.
 2. The mountingassembly of claim 1, wherein said connector member comprises anelongated rod having a first portion configured to engage with the tubeconnector, a second middle portion extending at an angle to the firstportion and a third portion engaging the suction cup.
 3. The mountingassembly of claim 2, wherein the middle portion extends at an angle ofat least ninety degrees in relation to a longitudinal axis of the firstportion.
 4. The mounting assembly of claim 2, wherein said suction cuphas an enlarged top knob, a dome-shaped cup part and a reduced diameterneck connecting the knob to the cup part.
 5. The mounting assembly ofclaim 4, wherein said third portion has a hook-shaped configuration,said third portion wrapping about at least a portion of the neck of thesuction cup.
 6. The mounting assembly of claim 2, wherein said firstportion of the connector member has a longitudinal dimension sufficientto retain an opening of the discharge nozzle at a pre-determineddistance above an opening of the sink or other waste receptor.
 7. Themounting assembly of claim 2, wherein said first portion of theconnector member has a longitudinal dimension of at least 0.5″ (1.25cm).
 8. The mounting assembly of claim 2, wherein said middle portionhas a longitudinal dimension at least equal to a radial dimension of thesuction cup.
 9. A mounting assembly for a liquid waste discharge linefor evacuating waste from a medical treatment apparatus, said liquidwaste discharge line comprising a discharge nozzle with a dischargeopening and a tubular connector carried by the discharge nozzle, saidmounting assembly comprising: a connector member detachably engageablewith the tube connector of the discharge nozzle, said connector membercomprising a first portion configured to frictionally engage within anopen bottom end of the tubular connector, a second portion extending atan angle to the first portion and a third portion unitary formed withthe second portion and forming a hook-shaped attachment member; and asuction cup detachably secured to the hook-shaped attachment member,said suction cup being configured for detachable mounting on a rim of asink or other waste receptor for supporting the discharge nozzle at apre-determined distance above the sink or other waste receptor.
 10. Themounting assembly of claim 9, wherein said suction cup has an enlargedtop knob, a dome-shaped cup part and a reduced diameter neck connectingthe knob to the cup part, and wherein said hook-shaped attachment memberwraps about at least a part of the circumference of the neck portion.11. The mounting assembly of claim 9, wherein the second portion extendsat an angle of at least ninety degrees in relation to a longitudinalaxis of the first portion.
 12. The mounting assembly of claim 9, whereinthe second portion extends at an obtuse angle in relation to alongitudinal axis of the first portion.
 13. The mounting assembly ofclaim 9, wherein said first portion of the connector member has alongitudinal dimension sufficient to retain the discharge opening of thedischarge nozzle at a pre-determined distance above an opening of thesink or other waste receptor.
 14. The mounting assembly of claim 9,wherein said first portion of the connector member has a longitudinaldimension of at least 0.5″ (1.25 cm), and said second portion has alongitudinal dimension at least equal to a radial dimension of thesuction cup.